Social Question

What do you think of our attempt to create a tiny star?

I just read through this article on CNN about the world’s largest laser attempting to create a tiny star on Earth.

What do you think about it? Will it be able to solve our energy problem? Or will it be a huge disaster? How will the world change if this works? Will it be for the better or the worse? How long do you think it will take for it to be commercialized? What effects will it have economically, socially, physically, etc…?

22 Answers

I’m cautiously optimistic, although I remain skeptical about how well this could translate into a controlled, sustainable energy source. The article didn’t go into much detail on that particular aspect so it’s difficult to evaluate the feasibility of a fusion power-plant.

The idea of using lasers to start a fusion reaction has been around a long time. There are two problems with it, though. The first is that so far attempts have put more energy into the attempt than was released, and the second is containment of the plasma. The theory is that if you can build a magnetic field strong enough, the plasma will be contained, but again, that takes an enormous amount of energy.

I believe I’ve read enough about this to say that I think they’ll have trouble replacing the fuel fast enough to sustain it as a power production plant. They might have to develop some very advanced storage techniques before distribution of power is attainable on a regular basis. For now it’s just a cool science project.

@Qingu
I was thinking of lightsabres too. XD
But where would the plasma come from and where would it go, when the thing is turned off? Inside the hilt? Wouldn’t it melt, how would all the stuff get back in there, how much energy would it take to sustain the magnetic fields to contain it all the time under enough pressure to make it fit?
It’s not how lightsabres work in Star Wars. There are crystals in lightsabres, for some reason, and no plasma container compartment. I say it’s just pseudomagic.